Chandra StaufferNPR Digital Services RSS Generator 0.94Samuel McConnell is a games enthusiast who has been playing games in one form or another since 1991. He was born in northern Maine but quickly transplanted to Wichita. Though he spends a great deal of his time at his day job helping people with their computer troubles, he carves out as much time as he can to play video or board games, or to tinker with his home cinema. Labels that apply to Samuel: Gamer, nerd, geek, techie, trekkie, whovian, cinephile. NPR Digital Services RSS Generator 0.94Samuel McConnellWed, 07 Dec 2016 09:00:02 +0000Samuel McConnellhttp://kmuw.org
Samuel McConnellI feel like there are a lot of games I’ve waited a long time to play. For example, Starcraft II was in and out of development for 7 years. But the first trailer for Final Fantasy XV was released over ten years ago - and despite numerous rumors over the years that it had been canceled, the game was finally released this week. When you start, it tells you it is “a Final Fantasy for fans and first-timers.” A lot has changed since the last Final Fantasy title came out in 2009. No longer is the game one where you select your attack or magic spell from a menu, and then wait your turn to watch the battle play out. Instead, the game has an active combat system more like what you would find in American role playing games. Instead of the mostly-linear gameplay of previous games, Final Fantasy XV has a more open world, all accessible by foot, car, or on the back of the series’ recurring giant birds, Chocobos. But the story itself is classic Final Fantasy. Your character is Noctis, the prince ofYour Move: Final Fantasy XV Was Worth the Waithttp://kmuw.org/post/your-move-final-fantasy-xv-was-worth-wait
76204 as http://kmuw.orgThu, 01 Dec 2016 07:00:00 +0000Your Move: Final Fantasy XV Was Worth the WaitSamuel McConnellTen years ago this week, I stood outside at the GameStop on West Street from noon to midnight, in chilly, 30-degree weather. I was second in a line that, by midnight, was two dozen people long. Once they let us in, I was finally able to buy a Nintendo Wii - they only had three to sell. Your Move: 10 Years of Wiihttp://kmuw.org/post/your-move-10-years-wii
75695 as http://kmuw.orgThu, 17 Nov 2016 14:16:20 +0000Your Move: 10 Years of WiiSamuel McConnellNintendo has been teasing their next hardware project, which was code-named “NX”, for over a year now, but they were tight-lipped on what exactly it was until they were ready to reveal it to the world. And last week they did just that, announcing the successor to the Wii U, which they are calling the Nintendo Switch. Your Move: A Look at Nintendo Switchhttp://kmuw.org/post/your-move-look-nintendo-switch
75076 as http://kmuw.orgThu, 03 Nov 2016 13:08:36 +0000Your Move: A Look at Nintendo SwitchSamuel McConnellThis month marked 19 years since a traffic accident claimed the life of one of the greatest innovators in Nintendo’s 127-year history. Gunpei Yokoi is still a well-known name among Nintendo fans, and more than anyone else, he may be responsible for the emergence of the Japanese company as one of the most successful video game companies in history. Yokoi joined Nintendo in 1965, when the company manufactured Japanese playing cards. His job was to maintain the machines that produced the cards. In his spare time, Yokoi built toys to amuse himself. One day, when the president of Nintendo was inspecting the production floor, he found a toy that Yokoi had built - an extending arm that could grasp small objects. He loved it, and ordered Yokoi to develop it into a retail product for sales that Christmas. The toy, which was called the Ultra Hand, was a huge success. Yokoi developed several other toys for Nintendo in the following years. In 1974, Yokoi was traveling on a train when he sawYour Move: Yokoi's Creativity Propelled Nintendohttp://kmuw.org/post/your-move-yokois-creativity-propelled-nintendo
74477 as http://kmuw.orgThu, 20 Oct 2016 11:44:49 +0000Your Move: Yokoi's Creativity Propelled NintendoSamuel McConnellBack in 2013, a group of gamers noticed that there were local conventions for sci-fi, anime, steampunk, and comics - but none for gaming. So they launched a Kickstarter, raised the money, and put on the first Tsunamicon. Your Move: Tsunamiconhttp://kmuw.org/post/your-move-tsunamicon
73932 as http://kmuw.orgThu, 06 Oct 2016 13:51:09 +0000Your Move: TsunamiconSamuel McConnell In the late 1980s and early 90s, when buying a video game console, it came down to one choice - Nintendo, or Sega? NES or Master System? Super Nintendo or Sega Genesis? Your Move: The Dreamcasthttp://kmuw.org/post/your-move-dreamcast
73405 as http://kmuw.orgThu, 22 Sep 2016 14:03:22 +0000Your Move: The DreamcastSamuel McConnellAside from gaming, one of my biggest hobbies is 3D printing. I think 3D printers are pretty amazing - you can take a roll of plastic and turn it into virtually anything. You don’t even need to know how to do any 3D modeling yourself - there are websites that host thousands of models ready to be printed. And, sometimes, when I’m wondering what to print, I’ll download and print a whole board game. One of the first things I ever printed was a chess set. Now, there are a lot of cool chess sets available to be printed online, but I think my favorite is one where every piece is a little planter. That way you can have a little cactus as your King, and little tufts of grass for your pawns. There are also some games that are only available if you have access to a 3D printer. A man named Jimmy Wilhelmson designed a board game based off of the old Atari video game Archon. The original game was supposed to be a board game that couldn’t be done in real life, but Wilhelmson modified the rules soYour Move: 3D Printing and Gameshttp://kmuw.org/post/your-move-3d-printing-and-games
72839 as http://kmuw.orgThu, 08 Sep 2016 20:32:52 +0000Your Move: 3D Printing and GamesSamuel McConnellToday, most new release video games for consoles cost around $60. They’ve been this price for a while, and back in the days of cartridge-based games, some could go for even more. In 1994, Super Street Fighter 2 was $70 new - which, adjusting for inflation, is about $114 today. So, as a kid, I relied on rental stores to fix me up with new games when Christmas was still months away. But, around that same time, Sega launched a service that had me playing more games than I ever could have with rentals. Sega Channel launched in Wichita in December of 1994, one of the first places it was available after a dozen test markets. When you signed up for the service, you got a special cartridge you could put into your Sega Genesis, and then hook up directly to your cable line. This cartridge acted like a cable modem for your Genesis. With the software on the cartridge, you could read about upcoming Sega games and learn about special sweepstakes. But, most importantly, every month, the service hadYour Move: Remember the Sega Channel?http://kmuw.org/post/your-move-remember-sega-channel
72206 as http://kmuw.orgThu, 25 Aug 2016 10:00:00 +0000Your Move: Remember the Sega Channel?Samuel McConnellNintendo’s first video game system was so wildly popular in the ‘80s that, for a time, “Nintendo” was a synonym for video games. Since then, other companies have come and gone in the industry, but Nintendo is still around. The soon-to-be released NES Classic Edition looks just like the original NES, but instead of being the size of a VCR, it’s now just a little bit bigger than a deck of cards. It has an HDMI port so it can connect easily to newer TVs, and comes with a brand new NES controller - manufactured for the first time in more than 20 years. The system doesn’t have a slot for games, but instead has 30 original NES games built-in, and I’m surprised at how good the selection is. Of course all three of the Super Mario Bros games are available, as well as both Zelda games and Kirby’s Adventure. But also there are some notable third-party games like Castlevania and Castlevania II, Super Contra, and the original Final Fantasy. Most surprising, though, is StarTropics - an old NintendoYour Move: Nintendo Console is New, Yet Nostalgichttp://kmuw.org/post/your-move-nintendo-console-new-yet-nostalgic
71031 as http://kmuw.orgThu, 28 Jul 2016 14:25:39 +0000Your Move: Nintendo Console is New, Yet NostalgicSamuel McConnell "Pokemon Go" is a smartphone game published by Nintendo, where you walk around the world and capture Pokemon - little creatures like Pikachu or Pidgey. And when I say you can walk around the world, I really do mean you. Instead of pushing a control stick to move your character, you actually have to get up and move. Your Move: 'Pokemon Go' Could Be the Secret to World Peacehttp://kmuw.org/post/your-move-pokemon-go-could-be-secret-world-peace
70252 as http://kmuw.orgThu, 14 Jul 2016 13:37:17 +0000Your Move: 'Pokemon Go' Could Be the Secret to World PeaceSamuel McConnellA good friend of mine turned 25 years old last week. Sonic the Hedgehog debuted on June 23, 1991, propelling the Sega Genesis forward in the marketplace and making it a true competitor to Nintendo’s NES. The first console I ever had was a Genesis, and packed with it were copies of the first two Sonic games. I eventually got other games for the Genesis, but none of them ever spent as much time in the cartridge slot as those two games did. They’re some of my favorite games of all time, and I still play through them a few times a year. At times, though, it’s been pretty hard to be a Sonic fan. Although the first several games were fantastic, quality with later Sonic games has been all over the place. Games like Sonic Advance, Sonic Adventure, and Sonic Colors have been great, but for every one of those, there are games like Sonic Boom and the 2006 Sonic the Hedgehog game, which were both so buggy as to be literally unplayable at times. That, and they weren’t much fun. Even Sega’s CEOYour Move: Happy Birthday Sonic!http://kmuw.org/post/your-move-happy-birthday-sonic
69634 as http://kmuw.orgThu, 30 Jun 2016 14:19:06 +0000Your Move: Happy Birthday Sonic!Samuel McConnellRight now we’re in the middle of this year’s E3 expo, the biggest video game trade show of the year. There’s always a lot of exciting news for someone like me who likes to follow what’s going on in the industry. It seems like this year, everyone has a new virtual reality game to show off. There is a virtual reality minigame for Final Fantasy XV, and you’ll be able to play the new Resident Evil game with the PlayStation VR, as well. One of the more exciting VR demos let you put on Batman’s iconic cowl, and use his evidence scanner to examine a crime scene in detail, walking around to find clues and recreate what happened. Speaking of VR, Microsoft announced a new version of the Xbox One, codenamed “Scorpio”, which will be far more powerful than the current version, and will have support for gaming in 4K resolution and virtual reality. Sony will be releasing a new, more powerful console known as the PlayStation 4 neo, but even the current PlayStation 4 should be compatible with theYour Move: Exciting News Coming Out of E3http://kmuw.org/post/your-move-exciting-news-coming-out-e3
68998 as http://kmuw.orgThu, 16 Jun 2016 15:39:17 +0000Your Move: Exciting News Coming Out of E3Samuel McConnell Blizzard Entertainment is best known for the wildly popular World of Warcraft, but about a decade ago they started development on a shooter game codenamed Titan. It was a huge, ambitious project, not unlike Warcraft - which fit the Blizzard of ten years ago perfectly. Since then, Blizzard and the larger gaming industry have changed, with the company finding success with much smaller-scale games like Hearthstone and Heroes of the Storm. So it was no surprise to me when Blizzard announced Overwatch, a much more focused version of what Titan may have been. Overwatch is a first-person arena shooter, often compared to Valve’s Team Fortress 2. The comparison is apt, with most matches following some variation of “Capture the Flag” or “Defend this base.” This basic premise isn’t terribly original, but what sets Overwatch apart isn’t the core gameplay, but the ridiculous number of characters you can choose to be. The twenty-one characters fall loosely into four categories - offense, defense,Your Move: Overwatch Introduces Variety To A Classic Premisehttp://kmuw.org/post/your-move-overwatch-introduces-variety-classic-premise
68376 as http://kmuw.orgThu, 02 Jun 2016 18:51:15 +0000Your Move: Overwatch Introduces Variety To A Classic PremiseSamuel McConnellYou’ve heard the Super Mario Bros. and Legend of Zelda themes before. (If you haven't, listen to the audio above.) Both of these songs were composed by the same man, Koji Kondo, who is responsible for many of the most recognizable melodies in video games. Your Move: Kondo Continues To Set The Standardhttp://kmuw.org/post/your-move-kondo-continues-set-standard
67835 as http://kmuw.orgThu, 19 May 2016 21:42:38 +0000Your Move: Kondo Continues To Set The StandardSamuel McConnellIn theatres right now is a movie called Ratchet and Clank - it’s based on the video game series of the same name, and the movie is horrible. It has a generic story and stale, predictable characters. It’s a shame, because the games are so good. It got me thinking - has there EVER been a good movie based on a video game? Your Move: Has There EVER Been a Good Movie Based on a Video Game?http://kmuw.org/post/your-move-has-there-ever-been-good-movie-based-video-game
67206 as http://kmuw.orgThu, 05 May 2016 18:13:21 +0000Your Move: Has There EVER Been a Good Movie Based on a Video Game?Samuel McConnellTen years ago, Square Enix announced a game called Final Fantasy Versus XIII. Originally set to come out on the Playstation 3, nobody from the company spoke any more about the game for years, and people started to doubt whether it would ever actually be released. Then, in 2013, Square re-announced the game, now calling it Final Fantasy XV and announcing it would be coming to the newest consoles. They released some gameplay footage and story details, and it finally looked like the game would be getting a release. Last week, Square released a demo for Final Fantasy XV, called Platinum Demo. Instead of being a portion of the game, though, Platinum Demo actually takes place before the events of the game itself. You control the main character, Noctis, but as a young boy instead of the young man he is in the full game. In the demo, you’re led through a dream world by a small magical fox-like creature called Carbuncle. It teaches you how to fight, and tries to lead you out of your dream soOne Step Closer to Final Fantasy XVhttp://kmuw.org/post/one-step-closer-final-fantasy-xv
66762 as http://kmuw.orgTue, 26 Apr 2016 14:29:54 +0000One Step Closer to Final Fantasy XVSamuel McConnellUnlike most other game companies, Nintendo has long stayed out of making games for mobile phones, preferring to publish games for the 3DS. But last year they announced they would start putting out games for iPhones and Android, and the first of those was released last week. Miitomo: Nintendo's First Game For iPhone And Androidhttp://kmuw.org/post/miitomo-nintendos-first-game-iphone-and-android
65876 as http://kmuw.orgThu, 07 Apr 2016 17:02:53 +0000Miitomo: Nintendo's First Game For iPhone And AndroidSamuel McConnellGame music composers mostly work behind the scenes, and with very few exceptions, hardly get mentioned outside of the credits at the end of a game. One of my favorite of these composers is Yoko Shimomura. Score Composers: Unsung Heroes in the Gaming Worldhttp://kmuw.org/post/score-composers-unsung-heroes-gaming-world
65263 as http://kmuw.orgThu, 24 Mar 2016 13:22:10 +0000Score Composers: Unsung Heroes in the Gaming WorldSamuel McConnell The ColecoVision console, Nintendo’s Game Boy, the Sega Genesis and several arcade games - Frogger, Galaga, and even Street Fighter 2 have one very important thing in common: They all use the Zilog Z80 processor. The Z80 processor was designed in 1976 to compete with Intel’s classic 8080 chip, the predecessor to the chips that most people have in their computers today. The Z80 was easy to program for, compared to other processors of the day, but more importantly, it was cheap and relatively powerful. This made it a very popular choice if you needed an 8-bit processor. Many early arcade games used one, two, or three Z80s as their main processors for the game, and in fact all Namco arcade games throughout the early 80s used Z80s. When the Game Boy was released in 1989, the Z80 processor was practically ancient, and the monochrome display seemed almost archaic, but it was important in the success of the system. Even though Sega’s competing Game Gear system had a backlit color screen, itZ80: The Most Prolific CPU of All Timehttp://kmuw.org/post/z80-most-prolific-cpu-all-time
64598 as http://kmuw.orgThu, 10 Mar 2016 13:44:03 +0000Z80: The Most Prolific CPU of All TimeSamuel McConnellThe virtual reality headset Oculus Rift has been available since 2014, but all of the hardware available for it has been “Development Kits”, that is, not really for consumer use. This year, though, we’re going to see not only the release of the consumer version of the Oculus Rift, but also its biggest competitor - the HTC Vive. Is 2016 The Year For Virtual Reality?http://kmuw.org/post/2016-year-virtual-reality
63959 as http://kmuw.orgThu, 25 Feb 2016 13:26:06 +0000Is 2016 The Year For Virtual Reality?